Attic: Firn, Ioanna, and Confidence continue listening into the secretive room. There are footsteps, proceeded by what sounds like thunder from within the room.
The persons in the room voice their displeasure with Sigeric Maveli. Another references Devin Seboya in association with their organization.
1st Floor: Odi, Imarra, and Ferron head back out into the vestibule. Odi pretends to chastise the others to disguise their unorthodox entrance. Isabella Maveli is on her knees and crying, being comforted by a serviceman. The door opens from the dining room and Sigeric Maveli walks out and approaches his wife while speaking to the crowd. He tells the crowd that the perpetrator of the murder of a serviceman was caught and that there was no further danger. He encourages his guests to enjoy the party. Sigeric and Isabella heads away from the group to the South Ward. Odi offers his condolences to Sigeric and asks if he can be any help but Sigeric brushes him off.
Attic: Ioanna attempts to quietly open the door to the secret meeting but is surprised to find her hand in an immense jolt of pain after touching it. Firn moves around to the opposite side of the room which features a similar door. The conversation inside continues, speaking on the merits of backing a single faction within Crandlewood to unify the city and increase its trade value throughout the bay.
1st Floor: Pascal is spotted by Odi, unaware of the hole that has come undone in his pants. Odi approaches him and Pascal laments about Karmen Kenezzar and the death of his former boss Rasmus Vasa. He says he is at the party hoping to gain favor from Sigeric and others in the The Conclave.
Imarra comes across two women who are gossiping about the murder. They're both from the Stormfair district and seem to thrive in the political chaos the Conclave finds themselves in. They mention that the Stormfair having been militarizing themselves lately as well.
Attic: Ioanna casts prestidigitation outside the door of the room to sound like a crying baby. Someone inside remarks that perhaps Sigeric knocked up a maid and is keeping them in the attic. They pressure someone named Luta to go investigate as "he is the youngest". The door opens, then closes and they hear footsteps coming towards them. Luta is a very tall, thin man, perhaps in his early 40s with long black hair.
Confidence uses suggestion and tells him to "stop walking and tell us everything that happened tonight". He tells them his full name, and says that he was there for the meeting itself, separate from the party. He spills that Sigeric was planning on framing the murder of his serviceman on elves that they had captured from the city. He would expose the murder to the crowds and use it as an excuse to rally their anger against a common enemy. Confidence asks if the Duchess Isabella was in on the rouse and Luta she is not.
Ioanna asks about the meeting. Luta says the organization meets all over the Bay of Kamard. Sigeric and Devin are both council members but there is no designated leader. He says all the members present tonight are from the immediate area with the exception of Sarai Leng from Jornbury.
1st Floor: Odi regroups with Imarra and notices that Ferron has followed Pascal into the ballroom. Odi then approaches Peronell Morningfall and warns her about the poison wine. Peronell hints that the person that she has been tracking works closely with a person that has been responsible for setting up the new sap trade within Crandlewood. That person is Devin Seboya. Imarra follows Ferron into the ballroom and watches as he slips into a room adjacent to the ballroom. Imarra attempts to create coded message to Odi pointing towards the room using food on the buffet table. Imarra then enters the room and notices it looks like someone fell directly through the center table, smashing it. She opens a door in the back of the room and hears footsteps going up a staircase, Imarra pursues.
2nd Floor: Imarra makes her way up to the 2nd floor and finds Ferron pushing Pascal against a bookshelf with a knife against his throat.
1st Floor: Odi tries to convince a footman that a child he was responsible for ran down into the basement.
Attic: Firn successfully knocks out Luta and he crumples down. Firn and Ioanna take him around the corner and Confidence uses disguise self to don the appearance of Luta. The door of the room opens again and they hear a voice. "Luta?!? Did you adopt the fucking baby?"
Ioanna and Firn finds a pouch of gold and a black feather with a notch at the end.
Confidence walks into the room, it is ornate and tidy and completely unlike the rest of the spaces in the Attic. There are large ceramic pots similar to the ones you saw on the ships and you see four flickering lights on the wall that look unlike any flame or magical lights you've ever seen. The secret group carry on their conversation, debating on whether to foster Crandlewood and help it grow or to abandon it and let it crumble, putting their resources elsewhere.
Ioanna and Firn stash Luta in a hole of unfinished flooring. They manage to successfully put him in under the floor just in time for a serviceman to notice the two and approach them. The awkward serviceman tells them they are going to have to leave for the lower floors but Firn lunges at the man and knocks him out as well, gagging and tying him and stashing him out near the defensive hallways facing the outside walls.
2nd Floor: Imarra walks into the room and acts as if she is interrupting. Pascal pleads her to stop him and Ferron tells her not to interfere. Imarra informs Pascal about the hole in his pants. Ferron presses Pascal on what else lies in the dungeon of this building and Pascal reveals that the barrels of blood are there. Ferron asks Imarra if she has any issues with him killing Pascal and begins to strangle him. Imarra fails to convince him to stop.
Odi notices Imarra's coded message at last and follows the trail of cheese towards the room. He rushes up the stairs and pulls Ferron off of Pascal. Odi slaps Ferron and reprimands him for risking the whole group. Ferron sighs and kicks Pascal in the face.
Odi casts command on Pascal and tells him to go home. Pascal groans, slowly picks himself off the ground and leaves the room.
Attic: Confidence is asked what "his" opinions are of Sigeric's request to assist with the Crandlewood takeover. They say that since his city is notably in danger of being overtaken by the elves. Ioanna places the notched feather in a hole by the door handle and a loud clack is heard. The room falls silent and a man stands to investigate. Ioanna manages to hide but peeks through the crack in the door and uses misty step to displace herself into the room next to Confidence. A man in the rooms reasons with the group that it wouldn't take an outlandish amount of investment to aid The Conclave to kick out the Aigrei . He guesses they would suffer 100 casualties maximum. The man calls a vote to the group, citing a passage that claims they are 6 of the 30 members of the Ravensquill Association . Everyone votes, minus Sigeric who is still out, but they put a "pass" token in for Sigeric since he put forth the motion in the first place. The man also seems surprised that Sarai Leng votes in favor of the Archduke. After the vote they call the meeting to a close, and the group leaves with Confidence hanging back, claiming to catch up with the others soon. Confidence and Ioanna investigate the room for anything interesting, they find a map of the greater Bay of Kamard.
1st Floor: Odi, Imarra, and Ferron return to the Ballroom. Tundi, in the form of a bird signals to Odi, via a clock, that something is happening in 15 minutes. They make their way into the service hallway and wander through the various rooms until they find a staircase descending downwards. It leads to a large sturdy, steel enforced door. It is locked.
Attic: Realizing now that the Ravensquill Association is much larger than you originally thought, Firn, Ioanna, and Confidence agree they need to kill Luta since he's seen their faces. Firn does the deed and leaves the body down below the Attic floor. The trio wander until they eventually make their way down to the same staircase as the others, rejoining the group.
Basement: Ferron manages to pick the lock and the group heads down into the basement. You see an empty, blood stained torture rack and a hallway with rooms that have barred entrances. In one of the rooms you find the body of what looks like a serviceman. In the cell next to him you see a large figure sitting on a cot. He is a large, blue Azhiraxu. He claims that he works for Sigeric and that he's only in the cell for his own safety. The group finds this unusual but since they don't find the elves you rush out of the basement and head back upstairs.
1st Floor: You head back into the vestibule, Odi casts fine steed and rides a spectral elk into the room. You burst into the vestibule into what seems like a quiet room. The crowd is gathered around the hostess who explains again through gritted teeth that she's sure you, the honored guests would love to join them on the 2nd floor.
2nd Floor: In the upper vestibule you see a stage area and Sigeric stands, with guards on either side of him. The entire group minus Odi try to create as much ruckus as possible while Odi rushes past the duke, guided by locate creature.
Odi opens a door into a service hall to find three armed guards who tense up upon seeing him. Imarra follows Odi into the hallway and tries to convince them that the Archduke is under attack. They refuse to budge and Imarra and Odi engage in combat.
As Sigeric commands the room to silence the rest of the party moves to surround him.
Hello again my friends. Apologies once more for the distress you may have been caused but I assure you my family and staff are well. My footman Seril is being treated for injuries to the best of our ability. I will not make light of the situation and tell you that things have been going well for Crandlewood and the island Nel. We sit at a pivotal moment of our collective histories, eight districts have held peace for 75 years but over and over again we find ourselves, the hardworking men and women of Crandlewood fighting for our freedom from outsider politics and law. Some of you may even view me as a foreigner, but my family has owned this land for generations, and though many of my responsibilities lie on Sver, I dedicate my life to serving the virtues and liberty of cities… human cities just like this, that thrive in a function that no Aigrei settlement could ever hope to achieve. I say that the events that transpired this week must be put to a stop. We need a return to normalcy, or pending that, I personally pledge to fight for change to secure our city from invaders once and for all. Does anybody wish to join my pledge?
There is a beat, before one by one people start to raise their glasses and cheer. Confidence and Ioanna try to pursuade the crowd against Sigeric.
Sigeric says
change of plans
while glaring at them. Then Ioanna casts darkness.
Ferron lunges at Sigeric and knocks him off the stage, onto his back, stabbing him in the gut. Ioanna, Confidence, and Firn take turns stabbing, shooting, and whispering to Sigeric how awful of a person he is. Sigeric and his guards are never able to regain their composition and finally Ferron makes the final move.
These are the eyes that watched all the destruction you caused and did nothing.
Ferron stabs Sigeric in the eyes.
And this is the throat that uttered the words that killed my daughter.
Ferron slashes Sigeric's throat. As a final motion, Ioanna takes out the featherquill and stabs it into the wound in Sigerics neck, leaving it for the crowd to see.
The group rushes off into the darkness and run into the hallway where Odi and Imarra are fighting the guards. A collective scream is heard behind you. Having been overpowered, Odi pushed into the room where he sensed the elves being held and used Grandpappy's Fence to create a barrier in between him and the guards.
continued in part 3...
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